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Regional committee votes to make section of Ontario Street cyclist-friendly
It only spans a city block, but a Niagara regional council committee and St. Catharines city council are miles apart on how to handle two-way conversion on a small section of Ontario Street. The Region’s public works committee voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to make Ontario Street between King and St. Paul streets a more pedestrian- and cyclist-friendly stretch. The committee’s recommendation — which goes to regional council next week for a final verdict — means the street could be two lanes from King and widened to three lanes at St. Paul. The one-way section of road is destined to be changed to two-way traffic, part of a series of conversions in downtown St. Catharines. The committee’s three-lane proposal will allow curb lanes wide enough for safe cycling and create wider sidewalks to encourage pedestrians. Meanwhile, St. Catharines city council passed a resolution in May telling the Region it wants four car lanes to battle traffic congestion. Ultimately, the Region has jurisdiction over Ontario Street. The city and Region are each responsible for different streets in the core. On Wednesday, several regional councillors said Niagara has to show leadership and forward thinking by promoting bicycle use and pedestrians. Thorold Regional Coun. Robert Gabriel said it’s worth taking a gamble on possible traffic headaches in order to make a statement that the Region’s biggest city is a progressive, livable place. “It’s a piece of the puzzle to make St. Catharines a great urban walkable city,” Gabriel said. St. Catharines city staff said adding bike lanes to Ontario Street would slow eastbound traffic by 50 per cent. But Joe Cousins, the Region’s director of transportation, said “it’s impossible to predict” how the two-way traffic change will affect traffic flow through the city’s core. Four lanes might move vehicles along more quickly, Cousins said during a presentation to the committee. “But is a reasonable amount of congestion tolerable (for a brief period daily) as a trade-off for improved safety for cyclists and pedestrians?” he asked. Committee members also rejected a third compromise option, presented by Cousins, to create three lanes at St. Paul, but build narrower sidewalks. The extra space would have allowed the Region to convert the stretch to four lanes if traffic congestion became a problem later on. St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan supported the compromise plan. Regional staff endorsed the three-lane, wider-sidewalk option approved by the committee. A handful of local cycling enthusiasts attended the meeting to show their support for bike lanes on Ontario Street. In a presentation to the committee, avid St. Catharines cyclist Virginia Stewart said those making changes to the road need to be considerate of bicycles. “Whether it’s four or three lanes, I’m going to be (on Ontario Street),” Stewart said. “You have to make sure it’s safe for me.” The committee also recommended the two-way conversion of St. Paul Street and King Street be complete before work on Ontario Street begins. Construction on Ontario Street isn’t expected to start until October, with a possible completion date of July, 2009. |